We have been talking over the last several weeks about barriers that stand between us and what we feel that God would have us accomplish as individuals as well as a collective body and we looked in Exodus through the eyes of Moses and we now see barriers in the life of Nehemiah.
I want to continue a thought that we looked at in the previous posts , ("When Broken Becomes Beautiful: Click Here), and ( "The magnitude of a Message: Click Here) with another portion of the story in a way that you may not have seen before.
Names are very important and it is imperative that we understand that in God's Kingdom, nothing is by accident. You were given that name you were given for a reason and so have those who God allows in your life. I believe that EVERYTHING is connected and NOTHING happens by accident. (See "Hello my Name is: Click Here)
Nehemiah's name meant "Comfort of God". Why is that so important?
He was placed, by God, strategically to bring the embodiment of His comfort and presence to 1) a king that did not know Him. There are none without excuse and if a person desires to find God, they have only to look around themselves. He is very present!
2) a people who were defeated and discouraged because of their present circumstances.
Who in the Bible is called " The comforter"?
"But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." ~ John 14:26
This is beautiful to me because right when we seem to be without hope in a situation in our lives, as believers we can be assured that we DO have a comforter! Not everyone has access to this comforter and for a person without Christ, your presence is far more dynamic and significant than you can ever hope to understand.
"So I returned, and considered all the oppressions that are done under the sun: and behold the tears of such as were oppressed, and they had no comforter; and on the side of their oppressors there was power; but they had no comforter."
~ Ecclesiastes 4:1
God's given message in your life is not by accident. Where you are at this present moment and who you are around is not by accident either.
The book of Nehemiah contains an awesome picture. God's people are hurting and are in a place where everything around them seems hopelessly ruined and God's Spirit comes to show them what is possible to accomplish through only His Spirit!!!
"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." ~ Philippians 4:13
Here is the word for you today:
God has given you a message to deliver to others around you and this is what your "Assignment" is in the lives of those He has placed you among. He has placed you strategically because your message and your unique way of delivery of that message is the the solution to someone elses' problem.
He has given you that message and there will be times that you face a seemingly impossible task in the accomplishing of that assignment. God has also given you everything and everyone that you will need to help you deliver that message in the exact time that you will need them to help you.
Look at this INCREDIBLE passage!!!!
"...And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah..." ~ Nehemiah 1:1-2
Hanna-who?
We see a character arrive on the scene named Hanani and he plays a role that is absolutely stunning if we will take the time to see it.
In a post called ("What a way to die: Click Here) we looked at Proverbs 3:5-6 and saw that in order to "find God" it was really just as simple as searching for Him and in that post I outlined a very simple way to identify God's voice in your life. We will use that method here in this passage.
Hanani means "God's Grace".
God's Comfort and His Grace met to bring about a restoration and a hope!
Do you see the picture?
You and I were destroyed and God's Spirit and His Grace drew salvation's plan to bring about a restoration and a blessed hope that we now have through Christ!
The message was there in the heart of Nehemiah, but it was activated through the message of Hanani. Hanani spoke into Nehemiah which in turn activated the process of recovery and restoration. It was Hanani's unique relaying of the conditions of the walls of their home and his specific descriptions of the feelings of the remaining people that sparked Nehemiah into action. God had prepared Nehemiah and his message all along and used Hanani and his message to bring ignition.
"The Man and the Wall" did not start out as a blog. It started out as a little book that I had written to explain to my, at the time, four year old son why God allows things into our life that bring hurt and pain. I was trying to find a way to explain to a child who said his prayers at night, why a God who loved him would allow cancer into the life of my mother-in-law. If God loved my son, didn't he love his grandmother? (See: Books)
That little book acitvated his four year old faith and spiritual eyes to understand the very big concept of God's purpose not His fairness dictating the circumstances of our lives.
That is the message that I have been given to speak to those I meet.
"God's purpose, not His fairness dictate the circumstances of our life"
I was praying about publishing that little book in order to help others understand that concept. It was such a simple book idea and the more that I talked with people, the more I saw adults struggle to grasp what had been explained to a four year old with this tool.
God sent a man named Gabriel into my life who stayed after me to publish that book. The name Gabriel means: Strength of God. I did not see how I could publish this first book, but God sent His strength in the form of Gabriel to help me bring this about.
The little book has since become a blog that is read now in over 79 countries, and this life's message has been going out to places that I never dreamed it could go.
Nearly seven months ago I had another tool placed in my Spirit to develop. It is going to be a 90 day devotional that is designed to bring Christians into a closer dynamic of relationship with their King. Writing the devotional has changed my relationship understanding and intimacy with God and I cannot wait for you to read it!
God sent a person named Carla, whose name means "Farmer" into my life to help me with this. Farmer? A farmer plants with expectation of a harvest. God conduits through this individual the ability to plant into other people lives in a way that helps them to unlock their potential. God is able to bring about a tremendous growth in the feeding and nurturing others spiritually because of this "Farmer". God's Spirit is the water, the message is the seed and He has gifted this "Farmer" with the wisdom of how to effectively plant and nurture that message into a productive harvest.
Just this past weekend, God had a person contact me named Elizabeth, whose name means "Consecrated to God". She was able to be an tremendous encouragement when it was needed most and helped in bringing this devotional closer to a reality.
You step out in your message and God provides the resources and the people necessary to bring that message to those it is intended to go to.
Who has God brought into your life and in what way are you different because of them?
I encourage you to do a little homework today and mentally make a short list of the five most recent people you have met. What was there name? What did their name mean? Why did God want you to meet that person?
It is proverbs 3:5-6 being acted out in front of your very eyes!
Next week we are going to look at how to prepare and overcome for opposition. You will not want to miss that post!
Climbing with you,
~Dan
Wonderful.
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